A species of Indonesian parrot known as the Goffin's cockatoo can solve a complex series of puzzles to reach a reward behind a glass pane, a study has shown.
Teams from from Oxford University, the University of Vienna and the Max Planck Institute collaborated on the study, which involved challenging cockatoos to pick a series of interlocking devices, each of which jammed the next lock along. To retrieve the nut from behind the glass, the birds had to remove a pin, then a screw, then a bolt, before turning a wheel 90 degrees and shifting a latch sideways.
The birds worked determinedly and consistently, employing a "cognitive ratchet" approach, meaning that once they had discovered how to crack a lock, they then didn't struggle with the same device again in future. This, according to the researchers, is consistent with the birds having an understanding of the goal they were pursuing.
By: Katie Collins, Edited by: Kadhim Shubber
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via Wired.co.uk
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2013-07/04/cockatoos-can-pick-locks
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